BudgetTravel

The most popular out-of-town excursion is Cape Point, where the Cape of Good Hope bucks and tapers into the sea like the vestigial tail of a dragon. The rental car's free miles will barely get you there and back, but even with the $5 entry fee, going this way still beats tour prices, which start at $40. On the dramatic drive (90 minutes each way), stop at the 3,200-bird Jackass penguin colony at Boulders Beach (786-2329; $2.25) past Simon's Town.

The intrepid can head three hours southeast of town to desolate Cape Agulhas, the true dividing line between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. Halfway there, stop along the ten-mile-long bay of Hermanus, where June through November you can enjoy what's probably Earth's best land-based whale-watching free of charge. On the way back, take one of the world's great driving routes: the heart-quickening Clarens Drive, which dances along the seaside cliffs between Rooiels and Gordon's Bay, the town whose beaches line the warmest waters.

Fans of the grape will love the 40-odd elegant wineries around Stellenbosch and Paarl. Most vineyards encourage visitors, but not all are alike. Some of the cheaper estates are Hazendal (903-5112), where tastings are free; Simonsig (888-4900), where they are $1.25 with a take-home glass; and the Bottelary (882-2204) on Bottelary Road near Stellenbosch, a wine co-op where bottles start at $.88 each. For their hidden charges and highfalutin gift shops, big-ticket wineries such as Spier are best avoided, unless it's for the privilege of petting the rare cheetahs in the nonprofit sanctuary on its grounds (809-1188, .cheetah.co.za; $4.45 adults, $1.90 children).

Wrap up your week with a visit to a certain Evita Bezuidenhout. In the former railway station of the aptly named hamlet of Darling (an hour's drive north of town on the R27), cross-dressing satirist Pieter Dirk-Uys portrays his nationally beloved creation--a politics-drenched analogue to Australia's Dame Edna Everage--as you enjoy a traditional South African meal. A basic understanding of national history is essential, but if you tell Evita you're a neophyte, she'll tailor her performance to help you along ($6.25; from Cape Town, 022/492-2831, evita.co.za; ask for English performance schedule). As the '60s-kitsch dining hall fills with steaming bobotie meat pies ($4.45) and honey-soaked koeksisters pastry ($1) being served, Evita lampoons fundamentalist Afrikaaners, dishing up spicy racial commentary to indulgent laughter and sloshing wine. "We apologize for apartheid," she solemnly chirps. "Yes, we're very, very sorry . . . that it didn't work."

Sleeps & souvenirs

Since the end of international sanctions, the deluge of tourism has fed a burgeoning lodgings industry; steer clear of the big name-brand hotels and you're off to a good start. At the rock-bottom end are several dozen hostels (most charging just $10 year-round for a dorm bed), many of which have diversified to include simple private rooms for couples and families. One, Ashanti Lodge (11 Hof St., 423-8721, ashanti.co.za), is a manse that boasts a golden veranda, lots of burnished wood, and a cheap cafe. Poolside doubles cost about $35, or $40 with private bathroom (called an "en suite" here in South Africa).

A less frenetic option, the loopy St. John's Waterfront Lodge in Green Point (6 Braemar Rd., 439-1404), near the pastel-splashed gay district of De Waterkant, is a melding of two houses, so it has two of everything (including pools) and 12 doubles for $32 to $37. Around Signal Hill in beachy Sea Point, an unrelated St. John's Lodge (9 St. John's Rd., 439-9028, stjohnslodge@mweb.co.za) stands next to the local ANC office. It's very basic-bed, table, wardrobe, and equipped kitchen--but even more inexpensive: Prices start at $22 for a single without bath and peak at $35 for a double with bath.

Cozier are the B&Bs, usually clustered in quiet residential areas away from public transportation and charging $30 to $35 per person during the April-to-September low season, when weather can bluster, and as much as twice that in the country's summer. The sleek Bayview (10 De Hoop Ave., Tamboerskloof, 424-2033, bayviewb@iafrica.com), with stylish art and wonderful skylight views of the mountains, charges a negotiable $40 in high season, $30 in low. Every room has a patio, and you can raid the fridge whenever you want. Bluegum Hill Guest House (Merriman Rd., Green Point, 439-8764, bluegumhill.co.za), clinging to Signal Hill, flaunts a stunning 180-degree view of Table Bay from its backyard; rates start at $48 in season (September through April), including a sumptuous breakfast served outdoors.

Reasonably priced hotels exist mostly downtown, where some travelers don't feel comfortable after business hours. Two I can recommend: the atmospheric 33-room Metropole Hotel, an antique with a still-running 1894 cage elevator (38 Long St., 423-6363, standard doubles $30-$45), and the unadorned, midsize Tudor Hotel on Greenmarket Square (424-1335, from $63 with breakfast).

By the way, every day except Sunday, Greenmarket Square is also the site of a tourist-oriented bazaar (most of the trinkets are really Nigerian or Kenyan); bartering is crucial. For local crafts--more of a rarity--try Masizakhe (419-2716) at the V&A Waterfront shopping mall. Its wares typify the resourcefulness required of Cape Flats living: Old oil cans are twisted into $13.50 baskets and $22 dolls are fashioned from discarded clothes.

Getting around, staying safe

By day, skip the slowpoke buses and patronize the minibus taxis (a.k.a. kombis) that ply Main Road from Camps Bay through Sea Point and Green Point to the Waterfront and into City Bowl. Hail one and enjoy the harrowing thrill of a Manhattan cab ride. Some white Capetonians will tell you to avoid what they denigrate as "black taxis"--and if you're hitching to the Cape Flats slums, where turf wars are common, heed their advice. But otherwise, I've used minibuses hundreds of times without incident.